Still for hydrocarbon distillation



sept. s, 192s. 1,552,698 v F. M. HESS STILL FOR HYDROCARBON DISTILLATION 2l SUPERHEATED STE/4M Patented Sept. 8,

, UNITED STATES FRANCIS M. HESS, 0F WHITING, INDIANA,

STILL FOR HYDROGABBOIT DISTILLATION.

A'pplcatiqn led November 20, 1922. Serial No. 601,971.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANCIS M. HEss, a citizen of the United States, reslding at Whiting, in the county of Lake and lState of Y Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stills for Hydrocarbon Distillation, of which lthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to boilers or stills such as are employed for hydrocarbon distillation purposes, and is mainly, although not exclusively, intended for use in distillation apparatus wherein the material to be distilled is cracked under pressure in the presence of a catalytic or contact body.

Petroleum oils to be cracked under pressure crack much more easily in the presence of some metals and compounds; such, for examples, as iron shavings, powdered copper, silver, nickel', cobalt and fullers earth. The main purpose of my present invention is to provide a still or boiler of such a structure as to cause the material heated and vaporized therein to flow therethrough in contact with the catalyzing agent, the latter being in a finely divided condition so as to afford intimatelcontact thereof with the flowing stream of oi My invention is preferably, and as herein shown and described, embodied in a still possessing the general structural characteristics of the still'or vapor box forming the Subj ect matter of Letters Patent No, 1,443,743 granted to me on the 30th day of January, 1923, and consisting generally of two series of internested broad fiat heating plates forming between them a zigzag conduit through which the material ows in a broad thin stream .while being heated; but, `in the broader aspects of the invention, it is not limited to stills of this particular type.

vIn order that the invention may be made intelligible to persons skilled in the art to such an extent as will enable the latter to practice the same, I have, in the accompanying drawing, illustrated one practical and efficient embodiment thereof; and referringthereto- Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional elevation of a still or boiler embodying my -improvements; Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-section through a pair of heating plates, on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; and Y v Fig. 3 is a perspectiveelevation of one of the mats or holders for the catalyzing agent which is superimposed on the upper heating plate of each pair inthe path of iiow of the oil thereover.

Referring to the drawing, and first describlng an improved form of vapor box or still designed for use in cracking systems such as I have disclosed in a former application, Serial No. 566,470, filed on the 7th day of June 1922, Rdesignatesa residuum tank mounted on a suitable foundation and capable of sustaining the maximum internal pressures employed in cracking systems of distillation. On this tank is mounted the boiler or still having a specific structure as follows. 10 designates the lower head of a cylindrical-metal tank constituting the housing or shell of the vapor generator. This tank head 10, as herein shown, is mounted and supported directly on a residuum tank R by suitable legs 11, and communicates with said tank by a-centraltube 12 through which the'residuum flows from the bottom of the still directly into the residuum tank. Mounted on the ytank head 10 are two pairs of parallel upright frame structures designated as an entirety by 13, which constitutes supports for a pair of generally W-shape-d groups (left and right) of hollow heating plates joined at their convergentl ends by hollow headers internested so as to form between adjacent plates 4of the two groups a continuous zigzag conduit for the gravity flow of the crude material in a broad thin continuous film or stream from top to bottom. The heating plates of both groups are structurally identical and are best illustrated as to details in the sectional View, Fig. 2, wherein 14 designates a group of tubes disposedA side by side at equally spaced intervals, and 15 designates each of a pair of longitudinally v"'corru ated boiler plates which overlie and under ie respectively the tubes 14, and 16 designates rivets uniting the two plates midway between adjacent tubes 14. This forms a hollow heating plate structure which provides two separate groups of conduits for heating media, namely, the interiors of the tubes14, and the passages formed between adjacent tubes 14 and the plate sections spanning adjacent tubes. The inner convergent ends of each connected pair of heating plates are united, so as to render the internal conduits of said plates continuous, by a hollow head or manifold 17 that extends transversely of the ends of the heating plates and is provided with a central longitudinal partition or bridge plate 18 extending from end to end thereof, the tubes 14 extending lthrough the partition or bridge plate and thus communicating with each other through the chamber'of the header on the outer side of said partition, and the ducts between the tubes communicating with each other through the chamber on the inner side of said partition. The outer ends of the convergent heating plates arev united by spaced headers 17, the outer and inner chambers of which communicate with each otherv through pipes 19 and'20, Each header is provided at its ends with trunnions by which it is supported in the frames 13. f

The above described 4structure affords a continuous zigzag multiple tube conduit for upward flow of a heating agent through the heating plate tubes 14, the outer header chambers, and the pipes 19, and another continuous multiple tube zigza conduit for the upward flow of another heating medium through the passages formed by and between the tubes and the boilerlplates, the inner chambers of the headers,- and the pipes20. In the arrangement shown the last mentionedI multiple tube conduits are used for the upward flow of the primary heatingmedium, preferably superheated steam, while the first mentioned group of conduits is employed for the upward flow of residuum from the residium tank R; the superheated steam being admitted through a pipe 21 and branch pipes 22 and 23, and the residuum4 from the tank R being forced upwardly,.un der the internal pressure, through the supply pipes 24. 'To insure the downward and forward flow of the material in process, the longitudinal edges of each plate which forms a part of the trackway orpath ofthe material are turned upwardly, as best shown at 15 in Fig. 2, to a level slightly above the heightof the headers, thus preventing lat` eral spilling or overflow of the material in process, and insuring its continuous downward flow in a zigzag direction over the header at the foot of the plate down onto the next underlying heating plate.

Surrounding and completely enclosin the vapor generating apparatus above des ribed is a cylindrical tank or bell, comprising a tankbody 25 and an upper tank headm26 which may be integral or continuous with the body 25, and is so shown herein. The lower tank head 10 and the tank body 25 have mating flanges 10 and25 formed to provide a tongue and groove joint andunited by bolts or rivets vor tank is, of course, constructed of a material capable of withstanding the maximum internal pressure yunder which the system ma be operated.

Iyrom the inner chambers of the topmost headers of the two series of heating plates 27. vThe still housing` branch pipesl`28 and 29 and a main pipe 30 connected thereto conduct off the steam; and similar branch pi es 31 and 32 and a main pipe 33, connecte into the outer chambers of the topmost headers of the two series serve to conduct ofl" the residuum.

The vaporis conducted ofl from the top i which is superposed on the top surface of each heating plate which forms part of the trackway or path of the material in process andincludes a finely divided body of cata- Iyzing material, such as any of the several materials hereinabove specified. Within the broad aspects of the invention, this mat may embody any perforated or reticulated holder or container of a thin flat form, filled with a body of the catalyzing material. I

have herein shown one practical form which this mat may take, the same comprising a finely perforated lower plate or screen 39 having upturned flanges 40, and a similar finely perforated top plate or screen 41 formed with downturned flanges ll2-interfitting and bolted tothe flanges of the bottom plate. In the space between the-plates 39 and 41 is contained a filling 43 of the finely divided catalyzing agent. TheV mat thus formed rests directly on the top surface of the heating plate, it is of-less cross-sectional area than the cross-sectional area of the conduit so as not to interfere with the upward flow of the distilled vapors, and it is pref- 1 erably retained in place by bolts'iA: connect- `flanges 4G to the upwardly ing the side flangesl of the heating turned edges or plate,

In the operation of the still, the material in process overflows from the trough 38 onto the top of the vtopmost mat, and from each of the inner series ofheaders 17 it overflows onto and through the next underlying ,mat In its downward flow over each mat the material'in procequipped heating plate,

catalyzing material ess permeates the throughout practically the entire length of the mat, coming into very intimate contact with the catalyzing material-while being heated, and being so modified by the latter as to greatly increase its cracking capacit While I have herein shown and 'described a specific embodiment of the principle of my invention, it latter is not limited to the specific apparatus herein disclosed, but may be structurally modified and employed in other specific structures of boiler 'or' still withoutl departl will be understood-that the ing conduit for the gravity How of the material to be distilled,.'said conduit being of sufficient cross-sectional area to permit the` generation of vapor therein and vits outflow therefrom in a direction counterflow to 'the material undergoing distillation, a container screen of less cross-sectional area than the cross-sectlonal area of'said conduitv resting on the bottom of the latter inv the pathof flow of said material, and: a

body of catalyzingmaterial in said screen.

2. A still for hydrocarbon distillation systems comprising, in combination, internested hollowl heatingl plates forming between them a zigzag conduit or the gravityfiow of the material to be distilled, container screensA mounted von the heating plates which form the bottom wall o f/'said conduit, and a body of catalyzing material within each screen.

3. A still for hydrocarbon distillation systems comprising, in combination, internested hollow .heating plates forming between thema zigzag conduit for the Gravity flow of the material to be distille container screens ofdsubstantially the same surface area as said heating plates covering the spirit and purheating plates which form the bottom wall of said conduit, and a finely divided body of solid catalyzing material filling each of said screens.

4. A still for hydrocarbon distillation sysltems comprising, in combination, internested hollow heating plates forming between" them a. zigzag conduit for the grav.

ity flow of the material to be distilled, and

amat overlying and substantially covering one or more of the heating plates, which form the bottom wall .o f said conduit, said mat comprising upper and lower finely perforated plates united at their margins,and a Afinely `divided body of solid catalyzing materialv between plates.

5. A,stil1 for hydrocarbon distillation systems comprising, lin combination, internested hollow heating plates 'forming beand confined by said' tween them a zigzag conduit for the gravp ity flow of the material to be distilled,.each of said heating plates having verticalside flanges, and a mat overlying and substantially covering one or more of said heating plates which form the bottom wall of said conduit, said mat comprising upper and- I lower finely perforated plates united at theirfmargins `and having vertical flanges secured to the flanges of said heating plates, and a finely divided body of solid catalyzving material between and confined by said plates.

' FRANCISM. HES-s. 

